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Hassan “Super” El Zamek – Center Field – Basra Bulldogs – 84.6% First Ballot

Hassan El Zamek was a 6’0’’, 200 pound right-handed outfielder from Alexandria, Egypt’s second largest city. The nickname “Super Hassan” generally came from his exciting baserunning and base stealing ability. El Zamek was the perfect traditional leadoff man as an excellent contact hitter with outstanding speed who very rarely struck out. He was often the one being brought in from RBIs by the likes of Nordine Soule and Hall of Fame classmate Farouk Adam with Basra.

El Zamek’s gap power was quite good with 40 doubles and 11 triples per his 162 game average. He wasn’t going to go yard often and never had a double-digit home run season. El Zamek also very rarely drew walks, but his ability to put the ball in play combined with his speed still led to plenty of opportunities on base. His top speed also gave him pretty good range playing the outfield.

Defensively, he spent the vast majority of his time in center field and graded as average to above average. El Zamek played some left field later in his career with similar results. His durability was fairly good in his 20s, but he ran into some injuries in his 30s. El Zamek’s skillset also wasn’t the type that typically aged gracefully once that contact rate diminished. Still, he worked very hard and was one of the smartest guys in the game.

El Zamek left Egypt for Iraq in April 2000 on a developmental deal with Basra. He was a rare teenage call up, playing 67 games and starting 60 in 2003 at age 19. El Zamek struggled and definitely wasn’t ready yet and was sent back into the developmental system for all of 2004. He returned to the lineup as a full-time starter from 2005 onward.

After an iffy 2005, 2006 started a five-year run of 7+ WAR seasons and an eight-year run of 5+ WAR efforts. El Zamek won his first Silver Slugger in 2006 despite losing a month to elbow tendinitis. He was subpar in the playoffs, but Basra won their first Arab League Championship of their 2003-12 playoff streak, besting Giza in the final.

El Zamek found his groove from 2007-10, leading the Eastern Conference all four years in hits and stolen bases with Silver Sluggers each year. In 2008, El Zamek was behind only teammates Adam and Soule in MVP voting with his record-breaking 261 hits, .407 average, and 138 stolen bases. To that point, 261 hits was a world single-season record that held until 2014. As of 2037, it ranks second in ALB history and ninth in world history. El Zamek also had his career highs in 2008 for OBP (.428), slugging (.537), OPS (.965), wRC+ (168), and WAR (10.7). After the 2008 season, El Zamek signed an eight-year, $20,880,000 extension with the Bulldogs.

In 2010, El Zamek scored 142 runs, only two behind the ALB-record set the prior two seasons by Farouk Adam. El Zamek also broke his own stolen bases record with 141, which held as ALB’s top mark until 2018 and ranks sixth as of 2037. 2010 also saw a 34-game hitting streak to set the new top mark in ALB which wasn’t passed until 2024.

Basra made the Eastern Conference Championship each year from 2004-12. They won the pennant in 2004, 06, 08, 10, and 11; and won the ALB Championship in 06, 08, and 11. El Zamek was an important part of the high-powered offense, although his playoff stats weren’t incredible. In 65 starts, he had 92 hits, 54 runs, 21 doubles, 7 triples, 2 homers, 19 RBI, 48 steals, .323/.350/.467 slash, 119 wRC+, and 2.7 WAR.

El Zamek did retire as the ALB playoff leader in steals, although he would be passed by one player. As of 2037, he ranks 5^th in hits, 4^th in runs, 14^th in games, 6^th in doubles, and 2^nd in triples. El Zamek had a nice run in the 2011 Baseball Grand Championship with 19 starts, 27 hits, 15 runs, 3 doubles, 2 homers, 7 RBI, 14 steals, .325/.367/.434 slash, 133 wRC+, and 0.8 WAR. Basra finished in the top half of the standings at 10-9.

He did also have experience in the World Baseball Championship, regularly returning to play for his native Egypt. From 2007-16, El Zamek had 73 games, 82 hits, 34 runs, 18 doubles, 2 triples, 5 homers, 33 RBI, 40 steals, .303/.349/.439 slash, and 2.5 WAR.

Injuries cost him part of 2011 to end his league leading streak, although he won another Silver Slugger. El Zamek led in hits for the fifth time and had his second batting title in 2012, along with his sixth and final 100+ steal season and seventh Silver Slugger. The season ended with a broken hamate bone in his wrist, missing what would be the final year of Basra’s playoff streak.

Now 29-years old, El Zamek surprised many by opting out of the remainder of his Basra deal and entering free agency. He had a longing to return to his home city, joining Alexandria on a five-year, $70,500,000 deal. The Astronauts had been the Western Conference champ two years prior.

El Zamek moved to left field and won his final Silver Slugger in 2013 despite losing the autumn to a broken bone in his elbow. He missed the playoff run, but Alexandria went 107-55 and won the pennant, dropping the ALB final to Jeddah. 2014 was also a somewhat injury shortened year, but still got 4.5 WAR. The Astronauts had a first round playoff exit in 2014 and would start a nine-year playoff drought after that.

He only played two years in Alexandria before opting out of his deal in search of a larger bag. El Zamek played 219 games for the Astronauts with 329 hits, 154 runs, 63 doubles, 15 triples, 5 homers, 93 RBI, 161 steals, .360/.386/.478 slash, 142 wRC+, and 10.9 WAR. He was able to convince Basra to sign him to a massive seven-year, $73,300,000. The Bulldogs hoped to recapture the magic of their playoff run, as they had posted back-to-back losing seasons since El Zamek left.

El Zamek still stole 93 bases with 3.0 WAR, but his overall batting value dropped to a subpar 85 wRC+. Basra showed little improvement and realized this contract was possible going to be a huge albatross. After only one year, they traded El Zamek to Medina for one veteran and one prospect infielder. The Bulldogs still had a decent relationship with El Zamek after his career was over and would retire his #14 uniform.

Between Basra stints, El Zamek had 1346 games, 1937 hits, 1009 runs, 345 doubles, 101 triples, 53 homers, 460 RBI, 1042 steals, .338/.360/.461 slash, 125 wRC+, and 59.7 WAR. Medina had been just above .500 in the couple years before El Zamek’s arrival and had hoped to compete with a now dynasty run from Jeddah in the Saudi Division. Unfortunately for the Mastodons, they finished out the 2010s at the bottom of the standings.

El Zamek’s contact ability and strikeout rate had both worsened at this point. He was still a reliable enough defender to have some value starting in 2016, but he was reduced to a bench role in the next three seasons, starting only 29 games and playing 109. With Medina, El Zamek had 252 games, 225 hits, 88 runs, 45 doubles, 78 steals, .292/.311/.371 slash, 84 wRC+, and 0.6 WAR. He retired after the 2019 season shortly after his 36^th birthday.

The final stats had 1817 games, 2491 hits, 1251 runs, 453 doubles, 124 triples, 58 homers, 615 RBI, 222 walks, 912 strikeouts, 1281 steals, .336/.358/.454 slash, 123 wRC+, and 71.2 WAR. As of 2037, El Zamek ranks 4^th in steals, 40^th in hits, 56^th in runs, 70^th in doubles, 38^th in triples, and 34^th in WAR among position players. El Zamek’s batting average ranks 14^th among all ALB batters with 3000+ plate appearances.

Advanced stats show that a profile like El Zamek is a bit over-rated compared to traditional wisdom. However, he still hit some nice benchmarks despite being done as a starter by age 33. El Zamek won eight Silver Sluggers, set two single-season records, and was a key starter in a decade of dominance for Basra. That got him across the line firmly at 84.6% for a first ballot induction. El Zamek joined former teammate Farouk Adam as the third member of Arab League Baseball’s four player Hall of Fame class of 2025.



Mostafa Nabil – Starting Pitcher – Medina Mastodons – 72.7% First Ballot

Mostafa Nabil was a 6’3’’, 200 pound right-handed pitcher from Shubra-El-Kheima, Egypt’s fourth largest city with 1,240,000 people within Greater Cairo. At his peak, Nabil’s stuff was absurdly impressive with some scouts rating it as an 11/10. He also had very solid control, but his movement could go flat at times. The extreme flyball tendency made Nabil liable for home runs if he was off his game. However, the pure stuff made him one of ALB’s best-ever strikeout pitchers when he was on.

Nabil had a three-pitch arsenal with a 99-101 mph fastball, curveball, and changeup. Each was equally dangerous and often looked the same to batters out of his hand. Nabil’s stamina was good in his 20s when healthy, but he ran into tons of injury issues. Even though he played in 21 seasons, Nabil only had 150+ innings in seven of them. His pickoff move and defense both graded as subpar. Nabil was respected by teammates as a humble operator that never drew attention to himself.

In December 1998, he was spotted and signed to a developmental contract by Medina, making the move from Egypt to Saudi Arabia. Nabil spent five full years in their academy before debuting in 2004 at age 21, but he stunk with a 5.81 ERA over 83.2 innings. Nabil only made one start in 2005’s regular season because of severe shoulder inflammation. He was back by the playoffs and made three starts with a lackluster 5.17 ERA over 15.2 innings. Despite that, the Mastodons earned the Arab League Championship over Casablanca.

Nabil’s first full season was 2006 and was stellar, leading the Eastern Conference in ERA (2.32), strikeouts (383), quality starts (25), complete games (6), and shutouts (4). One of those shutouts was an 18-strikeout no-hitter against Doha on June 1. He won Pitcher of the Year and gave up only two runs in 8.2 innings for his one playoff start. Despite having the #1 seed, Medina was upset by Basra in the conference finals.

2007 saw a repeat Pitcher of the Year win and many career bests for Nabil, including wins (21-5), ERA (2.06), strikeouts (398), WHIP (0.76), ERA+ (195), FIP- (42), and WAR (10.4). He posted the fifth Triple Crown pitching season in ALB history and set a new single-season K/9 record at 16.38 which still stands as of 2037. It also still ranks as the eighth-best qualifying K/9 in any world league. Nabil also had to that point, ALB’s third-best single-season WHIP and third-highest strikeout total.

Nabil tossed his second no-hitter on September 7, 2007 with 13 Ks versus Doha. He also set the ALB single-game strikeout record with 21 Ks versus Sulaymaniyah on July 12. Nabil had another 21 K effort in 2013 against Alexandria, which is still the regulation game ALB record (Abdelmalek Kamal would get 23 in 11 IP in 2015). Medina was again the top seed in 2007 and this time won it all, avenging the Basra loss in the conference final and beating Jerusalem in the ALB Championship. Nabil had a stellar postseason with a 1.29 ERA over 21 innings and 39 strikeouts.

After that 2007 effort, the Mastodons gave Nabil a six-year, $10,360,000 contract extension. His pace was still good in 2008, but he missed part of the spring to a partially torn labrum. Nabil was strong again in the playoffs with 1.12 ERA and 31 Ks in 16 innings with Medina losing to Basra in the conference final. Nabil’s postseason stats in total for the Mastodons saw a 2.35 ERA in nine starts, 61.1 innings, 3-2 record, 104 strikeouts, 171 ERA+, and 2.8 WAR.

Medina fell to 77-85 in 2009, but Nabil earned his third Pitcher of the Year and ERA title. He did it despite only making 29 starts with a few small injuries. Nabil led in WAR, wins, and WHIP in 2010 to claim his fourth Pitcher of the Year, a feat claimed by only four others in ALB as of 2037. 2010 saw a 16.02 K/9, the second-best ALB single-season still behind only Nabil’s own 2007 effort. The Mastodons had a first round playoff exit in 2010 with Nabil missing the final weeks to a herniated disc.

Nabil was third in 2011’s Pitcher of the Year voting and led in strikeouts in both 2011 and 2012. Medina remained above .500 for the next few years, but their playoff run was done. Nabil surprised them by declining his contract offer, leaving for free agency at age 30. With the Mastodons, Nabil had a 108-57 record, 2.95 ERA, 1520.1 innings, 2534 strikeouts, 296 walks, 137 ERA+, and 51.2 WAR. For his role in their mid 2000s success, Medina would later retire his #7 uniform.

He returned to his home country Egypt on a seven-year, $90,300,000 deal with Alexandria. It was his first real time home apart from playing in the World Baseball Championship from 2006-08, posting a 2.80 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 45 innings. Nabil’s deal was part of a big spending push from the Astronauts that included his Hall of Fame classmate Hassan El Zamek.

Nabil was quite effective in 2013, but lost half of the season to herniated discs in his back. Most importantly, he was a beast in the playoffs with 50 strikeouts over 23.2 innings and a 1.52 ERA, tying the then-ALB playoff Ks record. Alexandria won the Western Conference title, but lost to Jeddah in the ALB Championship. The Astronauts lost in the first round in both 2014 and 2015, then spent the next three years just outside the playoff field.

For his combined playoff career, Nabil had a 5-3 record in 13 starts, 2.03 ERA, 93 innings, 162 strikeouts, 9 walks, 196 ERA+, and 4.2 WAR. As of 2037, Nabil ranks 4^th in strikeouts and 4^th in pitching WAR, deservedly earning the reputation as a big game pitcher.

Nabil lost most of 2014 between more back troubles and shoulder inflammation and struggled even when healthy. He would stay healthy and bounce back for 2015, leading in strikeouts for the fifth time and WHIP for the fourth. Unfortunately in spring training 2016, Nabil suffered a partially torn UCL that kept him out the entire season. More back problems and an oblique strain bothered him for 2017 and 2018. Nabil also saw a significant drop in productivity in those years post UCL-tear.

With Alexandria over six years, Nabil had only 629.2 innings with a 39-27 record, 3.33 ERA, 901 strikeouts, 99 walks, 115 ERA+, and 11.4 WAR. Some argued that the 2013 playoff run made the big deal worth it, but most agreed that Nabil underperformed expectations. He was now a free agent again at age 36 after failing to meet the vesting criteria for the seventh year of the Astronauts deal. This marked the end of his time in the Arab League, although Nabil still hoped his resume could land him work.

It did in South America primarily as a reliever with merely okay results. Nabil spent 2019 with Santiago, 2020 with Belo Horizonte, 2021 with Cordoba, 2022 with Concepcion, 2023 with Rio de Janeiro, and 2024 with Buenos Aires. With the limited use, he mostly avoided injuries until suffering a labrum tear in 2023. Nabil retired after the 2024 season at age 42. In Beisbol Sudamerica, Nabil had a 3.82 ERA over 242.2 innings, 13-9 record, 244 strikeouts, 42 walks, 97 ERA+, and 1.9 WAR.

Nabil’s Arab League stats saw a 147-84 record, 3.06 ERA, 2150 innings, 3435 strikeouts, 395 walks, 208/324 quality starts, 130 ERA+, 33 complete games, 11 shutouts, and 62.6 WAR. Among pitchers with 1000+ innings, Nabil is the ALB career leader in K/9 (14.38) as of 2037 and ranks 33^rd in ERA, 6^th in H/9 (6.85), and 4^th in WHIP (0.95).

The injuries lower Nabil’s counting stats, but he still ranks 18^th in strikeouts, 23^rd in pitching WAR, 51^st in wins, and 71^st in innings. There were a surprisingly loud contingent of voters who felt Nabil simply didn’t pitch long enough to deserve the Hall of Fame spot. The fact that he was quiet and didn’t loudly advocate for his case might have emboldened them.

However, the majority pointed to his raw dominance in his prime, four Pitcher of the Year wins, three ERA titles, five strikeout titles, his playoff success, and two championship rings. 72.7% feels too low for Nabil’s debut ballot, but it still was enough to breach the 66% requirement for first ballot selection. With that, Nabil capped off an impressive four player Arab League Baseball Hall of Fame class for 2025.